Granville school officials cautioned residents last week, for the first time in a decade, to not jet to the bank early to pay their school taxes.

A property assessment mishap resulted in the Granville Central School District’s issuing corrected bills and suspending collection of tax payments.

School business manager Cathy Somich said she was notified by county officials on Aug. 29 that the equalization rate, the state’s measurement of municipalities’ property assessments, for one of the towns in its district had fallen.

“The equalization rate is established by New York State…that’s usually based on the level of assessment a town is at,” explained Laura Chadwick, county director of real property.

Hampton’s equalization rate decreased from 100 to 98 percent, causing a change in the amount of taxes to be paid by taxpayers in each of the districts towns: Hampton, Granville, Hebron and Whitehall.

“All of the properties in the town of Hampton are valued at 98 percent instead of 100 percent of the full market value. That can happen for many reasons,” Chadwick said.

Hampton assessor Mary Ellen Hill-Pierce did not return a call for comment.

This is only a preview of the story published in the Whitehall Times. To read the full story, pick up a print copy of this week’s paper at the newsstand or read it online here.

This is only a preview of the story published in the Granville Sentinel. To read the full story, pick up a print copy of this week’s paper at the newsstand or read it online here.